Neemia 2:13

13 Ed uscii di notte per la porta della Valle, e mi diressi verso la sorgente del Dragone e la porta del Letame, considerando le mura di Gerusalemme, com’erano rotte e come le sue porte erano consumate dal fuoco.

Neemia 2:13 Meaning and Commentary

Nehemiah 2:13

And I went out by night, by the gate of the valley
Where that formerly stood, for the gates had been burnt, and were not as yet rebuilt; this was the gate that led to the valley of Jehoshaphat, according to some; or rather to the valley of dead bodies, through which the brook Kidron ran, see ( 2 Chronicles 26:9 ) ( Jeremiah 31:4 ) it is the gate through which Christ went to Calvary; it led to Shiloh, Bethhoron, and Golan:

even before the dragon well;
so called from its winding about, just as a crooked winding river is called serpentine; though some think here stood an image of a dragon, either in wood, or stone, or brass, out of the mouth of which the water flowed from the well; and others, that since the desolations of Jerusalem, serpents or dragons had their abode here:

and to the dung port;
by which they used to carry the dung out of the city, and by which they went to Joppa, the sea, and all the western parts:

and viewed the walls of Jerusalem:
in what condition they were, what was necessary to be wholly taken down, and where to begin to build: it must have been a moonlight night or he could not have taken a view; for to have carried torches or lamps with them would have discovered them:

and the gates thereof were consumed with fire;
nothing of them remained.

Neemia 2:13 In-Context

11 Così giunsi a Gerusalemme; e quando v’ebbi passato tre giorni,

12 mi levai di notte, presi meco pochi uomini, e non dissi nulla ad alcuno di quello che Dio m’avea messo in cuore di fare per Gerusalemme; non avevo meco altro giumento che quello ch’io cavalcavo.

13 Ed uscii di notte per la porta della Valle, e mi diressi verso la sorgente del Dragone e la porta del Letame, considerando le mura di Gerusalemme, com’erano rotte e come le sue porte erano consumate dal fuoco.

14 Passai presso la porta della Sorgente e il serbatoio del Re, ma non v’era posto per cui il giumento ch’io cavalcavo potesse passare.

15 Allora risalii di notte la valle, sempre considerando le mura; poi, rientrato per la porta della Valle, me ne tornai a casa.